Friday Finish

Happy Friday!  I am so excited I finished the t-shirt quilt.  I originally had started out doing a meander with loops on the quilt but it just didn't trip my trigger.  I was getting a ridge between the sashings and the t-shirt blocks, so the quilting was not even enough.  So I started looking through my patterns on the computer.  I am so excited with the results.  The quilt lays really nice now.  I started chuckling at myself yesterday as I finished this quilt.  I have said many times that I do not do custom quilting, but this quilt is all custom quilted.  So lesson learned -- I do custom quilt. :)

                                         Below are a few close ups of the blocks.

 

This was the most difficult block, quilting gray on gray.

 

Double loop quilting in sashings.

While I am working this is what goes on under my sewing table.  These two grew up together and size doesn't matter.  Just a bunch of monkey business going on.

 

Have a great weekend.  I have the weekend off from the mall.  Plan to enjoy some family time and hope to get a few more quilts done.  I have a few deadlines to meet for the quilt store competition in August.

 

 

Today I am linking up with ..... Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link a Finish Friday, Freedom Fridays, and Crazy Mom Quilts. 

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

 

Tuesday Tip

Have you ever had trouble quilting on gray fabric with gray thread or black on black, etc?  Today I was working on a t-shirt quilt and ran into that very problem.  Each quilt I finish on the longarm teaches me something.  Mostly humility, but today I had to dig back in my memory on how to solve this issue.  I remember visiting with Jamie Wallen in his studio in Michigan City and he showed me light bars he hung on his longarm.  This allowed the light to shine sideways and you could see the texture of where you had already quilted.  It also helps sometimes to turn your overhead lighting off in the room. 

So here is what I rigged up on a moments notice.  I taped my battery operated light to the tube my batting had been wrapped on. 

 

I adjusted the angle of the light by running a piece of tape from the tube to the up take roller and pinned the tape to hold the light at the right angle to make the thread show up so I could see where I had already quilted.  Blue painter's tape is a wonderful thing.  It does not leave residue behind. 

 

Below is one view of the gray thread on gray t-shirt. 

 

This is a little lower angle, with overhead lighting off. 

 

This may also be a problem on your domestic machine when free motion quilting.  Try turning your room's overhead lighting off or down and using an Ott light at the side or back of your machine.

 

Today I am linking up with Kathe with an E, Freemotion by the River, and Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

Design Wall Monday

Hope everyone had a great weekend!  I had to work at the mall each day but got a chance to come home and hang out with my family, also.  Saturday, we joined the neighbors for a picnic and bags games.

Even the dogs had a play date.  This is Daisy the Silky Terrier in the front and Rascal our Yorky in the back. 

 

Rascal liked hanging out with Ashley.

 

After the picnic I went home and sewed.  I had a baby shower to attend the next day.  I made this Shannon baby quilt.

Below are the expectant parents, Chance and Jade.

The cake was yummy with butter cream frosting. 

 

Chance built this marshmallow toaster.  You light the sterno cans and roast your marshmallows and they had jars of chocolate and graham crackers for making smores.  I'm not sure who was the biggest kid here?

 

This was a co-ed shower, so the guys played bags and then switched to this life-sized game of Jenga. 

It was about 5.5 feet tall before it tumbled down.  Watch your toes! 

 

It was a fun shower and they received many great gifts for the baby.

 

Today I am linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times.

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

 

Friday Finishes

Happy Friday!

We all survived another week.  It was a busy one but happy one.  It was so good to see my dad and step-mother this week.  It is especially great to see my dad feeling so well since all his health issues last fall.  He sure is like a Timex watch, "takes a licking and keeps on ticking".

 

A very special Happy Birthday to my step-mother, Pat.  Today she is 80 and doesn't look or act like it in anyway, shape or form.  Many more happy birthdays, Pat.

 

This morning I had cinnamon roll waffles for breakfast.  You put Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls in you waffle iron and get....I butter them.  This is three rolls.

Then add the frost that comes with them. 

Below is just one roll. 

 

So what have you all been up to today?  I ran errands this morning, i.e. groceries, quilt store, paid the barn rent for the horse,

met with the carpet shop for our home remodel as well as met with the kitchen planner. 

 

 Then came home to work on a t-shirt quilt.

 

Since I didn't post a Friday finish last week.  Here is the Thimbleberries quilt I finished last week.  It is queen size.

 

 

The quilting pattern is called Tole Painting and the thread is Omni 3014 Maple.  I wish the picture quality was a little better.  Didn't have any help around to hold up the quilt. 

 

I also have my two July blocks finished for the BOM Barn Quilt at Quilter's Garden.

 

I am heading to my second job at the mall.  I will have more Sales Lead training tonight.  I am really enjoying the experience.

 

Today I am linking up with ..... Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link a Finish Friday, Freedom Fridays, and Crazy Mom Quilts. 

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

Work in Progress Wednesday

Today was a good day.  After seeing my husband off to work, I got cleaned up waiting to hear from my dad and stepmother.  We were able to have a nice dinner with them last night as well as sit and visit to get caught up.  Then this morning my son and I were able to meet them for breakfast.  It is so nice to see my dad healthy and back to his old self since last fall.

 

My dad and stepmother had made a quick trip back to Princeton for a funeral.  I am happy to say that I received a text this evening and they are home safely.  Thanks Dad and Pat for breakfast and the yummy sweet corn.

 

Today I had my customer, Stephanie, who has brought me many quilts, stopped by with another quilt and stayed to visit.  We caught up this morning as well as picked out the quilting pattern and thread for her latest quilt.  She also brought me some selvages for my collection.  I have a dream of  making a selvage quilt.

Stephanie had not seen the Block magazine put out by the Missouri Star Quilt Co. so I showed her one of my issues.  She was as impressed as I am with the "no ads" and the quality of the magazine.  There are You Tube videos to match each pattern to help you learn the technique.  My quilty friends and myself met Jenny Doan of the Missouri Star Quilt Co at the Chicago International Quilt Show.  She was a joy to visit with and we would love to take a trip to her new retreat center.

 

This afternoon I went to work at my mall job.  Today was the start of my training to become a part of the Sales Lead Team.  Its exciting and a lot to learn in a very short amount of time.  I will try to keep a positive attitude like the Little Engine that Could book, "I think I can, I think I can!" Tomorrow night I will learn closing procedures.

 

Tonight I needed a little quiet time.  Not much energy left in this body but a little fabric therapy will sooth the soul.  So now both of my BOM squares are complete for the barn quilt at Quilter's Garden.

 

Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite!

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

The Way to a Man's Heart is Through His Stomach

I wanted to do something nice for my son as he is coping with a broken heart.  So on Facebook today there was a copycat recipe for Avalanche Bark.   I thought, "Why not make a batch"!

WooHoo! It put a smile on his face and he ate a big chunk.

He told me that its about as close as you can get.

 

I am one happy momma.  I got a glimpse of that beautiful smile as payment.

(Doing the happy dance!)

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

Tuesday Tip

Starting off my day with some yummy muffins.  Apple Cinnamon muffins from an Aldi's mix.

They are tender, moist and easy to make.  As you can see they don't make a large batch.  My family also loves Aldi's Brownie mix.  They are fudgy, chewy good.

 

Last Thursday our guild sponsored Polly Perkins, from Lucky 2 B Quilting in Pecatonica, IL, as our guest speaker.  Her fun speech was on "My Bag of Tricks".  She talked about several tools that I have heard of but there were several new ones. 

 

This one is called the Ultimate Marking Pencil by Hancy.  It marks dark to medium fabrics.  You may sharpen it like a crayon and it just irons away.  As much as I love my white Clover pen, they dry up and this Ultimate Marking Pencil will not dry up.

Many of the longarmers flocked to the table to buy one of the pencils.

Another tip Polly talked about and I also shared yesterday  HERE was using Best Press.

 

Hope you are enjoying wonderful weather where ever you are.  It is a comfortable 72 degrees here.  The windows and doors are open and no air conditioning.  Just loving it!

 

Today I am linking up with Connie at Freemotion by the River.

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

Design Wall Monday

Do you ever have one of those days or weekends where you just want to say, "Stop the world, I want to get off!"  Things are so busy around here since the week of the 4th of July.  My husband and I are like a tag team, we take turn doing the chores around the house.  Since the week of the 4th of July he has been working long hours with an hour commute each way, so I have been trying to take care of all the chores while he is working so hard.  Next, my mall job had about 6 ladies give their 2 weeks notice.  Never, never did I imagine that I would go from the bottom of the pile to the top.  This is not quite how I imagined my retirement days.  So I have agreed to take a temporary sales lead position from now until January.  So this will give me 20-30 hours a week at the mall store.

 

We are anticipating doing a remodel on our home.  This is why I took the additional hours at the mall.  Originally, I only wanted a few hours to get out of the basement and socialize.  Better to work outside the home than to listen to all the pounding and banging with the remodel.  Also, I may not be able to quilt while they are working on the house.  The longarms may have to be moved and taken apart to make room for the carpenters.

 

So today, since things seemed a little overwhelming, I stopped and worked on piecing a few blocks.  I find piecing to be great therapy for a busy mind.

 

These are blocks for the Barn Quilt that is a BOM at Quilter's Garden in Princeton.  Below I am checking the size of my flying geese blocks and they are righ on!  I use Best Press on my fabrics before I cut out the pieces.  It really helps the fabrics from stretching and gives me good, sharp folds.

 

Working on the square in a square for the center of the second block.  We make two pieced blocks this month. I am proud to say all the fabrics came from my stash.  Using up those scraps!

 

Tomorrow the plan will be quilting a t-shirt quilt and then onto three lap-size quilts.  Hoping for a great Friday Finish Blog this week! :)  Also, my dad is coming home for a quick visit, so a little housekeeping is in order.

 

Today I am linking up with Judy at Patchwork Times.

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday Finishes - Happy 4th of July America!

Happy 4th of July!

Hope you are celebrating the fourth of July your way with family and friends.

 

We (Rod and I) have been working long hours at our jobs this week.  Rod has had 12 hour day at his job preparing for the long holiday weekend.  I have been busy with my mall job and completing quilts for deadlines.

 

First, since Rod is around he thinks he has to be the energizer bunny and get many things done. The Acadia is vacuumed, detailed and waxed.  Mmmm, maybe its time for a Shop Hop with a clean vehicle?

Now he has moved on to weed-eating around the fence in the backyard.

 

While he was out working on the vehicles, I decided to work on making a batch of Mom's Super Laundry Sauce.  Recipe is HERE.

Later, I will have to whip it and it will look like mayonnaise.  You use one tablespoon per load.  My friend swears by it, as she has three busy grandkids and lots of laundry, I thought I should try it. 

 

Kathy O has been at it again.  She made the fish quilt a few weeks back.  Here is the quilt for grandson, Andrew, who is turning one year old.

Here's a close up.  The quilting pattern is called Road Construction B2B by Anne Bright.com. The pattern has dump trucks, cement trucks, road signs, shovels, and caution cones.  We used Omni thread. 

On the back is Minky or Shannon, I don't which brand.  Its so snuggly soft. 

 

Next finish was this lovely Carpenter Star Quilt.

Its made with embossed fabrics. 

 The quilting pattern is Rose Garden by Handi Quilter and light sage thread by Omni.

This quilt was 90" x 102" and with no one else around I just had to drape it across the longarm for pictures.  Its so much fun when the customer walks in, sees the quilt waiting and says "Oh I just love it".  She hadn't even seen the front yet.

 

I am currently working on a Thimbleberry quilt.

 

The dogs are not happy today, nor last night.  The neighbors have been shooting off fireworks and it makes the dogs very nervous.  Later, we put them all in their crates in the basement for their safety and comfort during the fireworks.

  

Today I am linking up with ..... Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Link a Finish Friday, Freedom Fridays, and Crazy Mom Quilts. 

 

Have a great holiday!

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday Tip & Block of the Month Links

There has been a discussion on the Quiltville Studio Facebook page about whether or not to keep triangle pieces.  Here's my plate full of random triangles.

Tuesday Tip:  My answer to the question "Should I keep these?", is Yes!!!

 

I have made several pretty projects out of these wonderful leftovers.  I collect the triangles in a drawer.  I even collect other quilters' triangles which increases my variety of fabrics.  Then when I have a need for half square triangles I go through my drawer, which is my version of home shopping.

Below is a small quilt I made with leftovers.  I did use one fabric for the light side of the HST but the dark side is all scraps.  I made two similar quilts like this and sold the other one.

 

This flag pillow was made from leftover triangles. 

 

Small table topper made with matching HST.

 

This is the Country Threads 2013 Free Online Quilt.  All the scrappy half-square triangles are leftovers, except the ones in the blocks where many matching HSTs were needed.

For me it definitely works to save scrap triangles.  If you don't want yours, ship them here, I will give them a new home.

 

Now for those of you that are working on some of same Block of the Months, here are the new links for July.

Country Threads 2014 Free Online Quilt:  http://country-threads-chicken-scratch.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/July-BOM.pdf

 

Quilt Doodle Designs:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-UGYD12TSr-VDdLTk10aUxXekE/edit?usp=sharing

 

Today I am linking up with Connie over at Freemotion by the River.  Please keep Connie and her neighbors in your prayers.  They are dealing with the mighty Mississippi River and the flooding caused by the large amounts of rain we have had. 

 

Sunday night I had 1 3/4 inches of rain and yesterday we had another 2 inches.  I am so happy to hear my basement system working.  In the past, we would have been downstairs with shop vacs, but two years ago we installed a basement system with tiling and sump pumps.  I do the happy dance when I hear it running and the basement is dry.

 

Yours in quilting,

Terry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I